International Marketing Introduction The three primary models that international marketing is predicated on include ethnocentric, geocentric and polycentric approaches to entering, selling to and serving new markets. Each of these approaches have inherent strengths and weaknesses associated with them, and the intent of this analysis is to explain how the way a company markets a product or service will dictate the selection of one over another. There are many cultural differences and factors to take into account when choosing which of these models to base a global expansions trategy on. The Hofstede Model of Cultural Dimensions is commonly used as a taxonomy for defining and basing decisions on cultural attributes as defined through the research of Dr. Hofstede while at IBM (Hofstede, McCrae, 2004). Analysis of the Primary Models of International Marketing The greater the complexity and variety of a given market, the more critical it is to align each strategy and initiative, every supporting system and platform to the unique needs of a global market. The most preferred approach for entering highly culturally diverse, challenging markets is to concentrate on a polycentric approach to business development, marketing, selling and service strategies (Kucza, Gebauer, 2011). This approach also makes it possible to create a more effective balance between the variations in cultures between the host nation of the expanding firm and the nation being expanded into (Hofstede,
International marketing or business is uniquely different from the local market because the product price, place and promotion is vastly different from what is been offered to local customers (Johansson, 2000) With the emergence of the information technology, cross border marketing has never been a distant dream. However, it has never been easier even for giant multinational companies to face challenges that come in international business. The biggest challenge comes from the culture which varies from country to country.
At the Global Breakthrough and Expansion phase, expansion to new markets and increased pres-ence to existing markets continues with globalization degree 25-50% and sales in three continents (Gabrielsson & Gabrielsson, 2009b). As the firm matures and with the new fear of losing overseas markets, they establish their own sales office in the form of foreign direct investment in addition to relying on exports and partners (Hashimoto 2011, p.27). With the drive to achieve global break-through, firms will start to take on distant and challenging new markets thus coming across difficul-ties in cultural, legal, and localization aspects (Rönkkö et al., 2008).
In a time of global commerce, new business ventures can take on many forms. What used to be local or even national companies have become world-wide. International growth of a business can be extremely beneficial but is not without its challenges. Different countries have different peoples and different cultures - different ways of doing business altogether. If a venture is to be successful, these differences must be well understood.
Every country differs in culture which has been there for centuries. The international market is growing rapidly, with more and more multinational organisations entering new markets each day. In this assignment I will evaluate how the difference in cultures affects the performance of international businesses.
There are significant cultural differences between Japan and the United Kingdom that need to be taken into account when doing international business. There are also a number of methods and systems by which these differences have been described. These include the Geert Hofstede cultural dimensions, Trompenaars seven dimensions of culture and the Globe Project's cultural dimensions. This paper will discuss these differences and similarities, and shed light as to the best approach to international business in these countries.
It is this gap in cultural understanding and increase in globalization that makes cultural models, such as Hofstede’s, that much more important to learn and apply during business relations. Many companies that try to expand beyond their current borders end up failing due to refusing to recognize the differences between cultures. An American company that expands into foreign markets, yet tries to run their operations and marketing as they would in America, is going to have a difficult time. Products and well as company practices need to be adapted to suit the country’s business culture, current market climate, taste/preferences of the citizens, etc.
Introduction: There are around 196 countries in the world and the cultures and values differ between the different countries. There are still similarities in some of the culture traits. In today’s world people are more willing to engage in global business and for this reason they need to be able to adapt to the different cultures. As the cultures vary from country to country, people around the world may face many difficulties during their communication. Many businesses have failed due to the fact that they failed to fully assess the market they were entering in. The paper will portray three different approaches that will aid in understanding cultural differences that can be utilized as effective tools in conducting global business. These approaches are known as the context approach, the cluster approach and the dimension approach.
For the course of International Management the following assignment has been giving with the objective to select a topic in the field of International Management. The topic for this paper is Cross-cultural Communication in Marketing/advertising.
1. To what extent is a global approach to international marketing appropriate to firms in the Asia-Pacific?
Making business abroad can be risky, but it can also be profitable for a company as well; thus the necessity to study in deep the country where the company will bring the business to. International companies are faced with many cultural challenges, when doing business across and inside of different borders. Identifying the significant cultural issues involved when evaluating the attractiveness of a particular location as a place for doing business can be crucial for a business. Aspects to consider when studying culture in a new place
The original formula for Red Bull was developed in 1964; however, the Red Bull company was not founded until 1984 after a merger between Dietrich Mateschitz, marketing guru, and Chaleo Yoovidhya, the owner of the Red Bull formula. Categorized as an energy drink, Red Bull was initially designed to “treat jet lag and boost energy for truck drivers” (Hollensen, 2012). In today's era, Red Bull is commonly used as an energy drink; like coffee, and as a mixer in alcoholic drinks, like Red Bull Wings and the Jägerbomb. This aligns with the company's focus on the younger generations of partygoers and post-secondary students.
The literature on international marketing presents a confrontation between two mainstream schools of thought regarding international marketing. The one supports the standardization approach and argues that multinational companies’ behavior should be uniform to minimize total costs and promote a global corporate image. The other argues for the need for adaptation to fit the unique dimensions of each local market. This research investigates companies’ practical level of adaptation and standardization in international markets. It identifies
The world offers significant business opportunities for every company, however, opportunities are accompanied by significant challenges for managers. Managing global operations across diverse cultures and markets represents a big challenge and opportunity for companies. To compete in the global market and be successful, companies must learn the strategies, policies, norms and technology necessary to conduct international business. The opportunities for global expansion are numerous, and attaining success is a matter of developing the right strategy to win local markets and its consumers.
The most challenging decision that a company may face in internationalization is the degree of standardization or adaptation in its operations. The question of standardization or adaptation affects all avenues of a business’ operations, such as R&D, finance, production, organizational structure, procurement, and the marketing mix. Whether a company chooses to standardize or adapt its operations depends on its attitudes toward different cultures. These attitudes are defined by three orientations toward foreign culture: ethnocentric, polycentric, and geocentric.
The big issue that every company has to encounter when they first enter to the oversea markets is cultural differences which is one of the keys to international business success. Thus, firms, that want to do global business, need to be awareness and have a good understanding of different cultures and, then use that learning to be beneficial for their products and services. One key of doing business globally in different cultures is to be able to adapt to the new cultures or environments to provide the services and products more effectively to satisfy the consumers.